Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) Sets New 52-Week High After Analyst Upgrade

Universal Health Services, Inc. (NYSE:UHS)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Thursday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $195.00 to $200.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Universal Health Services traded as high as $183.50 and last traded at $182.58, with a volume of 14183 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $181.85.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on UHS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Universal Health Services from $144.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Universal Health Services from $170.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. Barclays assumed coverage on Universal Health Services in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $181.00 target price for the company. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Universal Health Services from $152.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Universal Health Services from $170.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $176.29.

Insider Activity

In other Universal Health Services news, CFO Steve Filton sold 35,000 shares of Universal Health Services stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.82, for a total value of $6,188,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 68,785 shares in the company, valued at $12,162,563.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 15.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Universal Health Services

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Universal Health Services by 48.0% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,967,220 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $247,339,000 after purchasing an additional 638,166 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Universal Health Services by 32,501.2% in the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 570,847 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $87,020,000 after purchasing an additional 569,096 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Universal Health Services in the 4th quarter worth about $86,117,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Universal Health Services by 12,924.9% during the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 503,935 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $76,820,000 after purchasing an additional 500,066 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Iron Triangle Partners LP bought a new position in Universal Health Services during the 2nd quarter valued at about $74,152,000. 86.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Universal Health Services Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $12.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.23. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $166.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $147.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77.

Universal Health Services (NYSE:UHS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The health services provider reported $3.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.02 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $3.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.66 billion. Universal Health Services had a return on equity of 12.08% and a net margin of 5.03%. Universal Health Services’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.02 EPS. Analysts expect that Universal Health Services, Inc. will post 13.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Universal Health Services Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. Universal Health Services’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.80%.

Universal Health Services Company Profile

Universal Health Services, Inc, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates acute care hospitals, and outpatient and behavioral health care facilities. It operates through Acute Care Hospital Services and Behavioral Health Care Services segments. The company's hospitals offer general and specialty surgery, internal medicine, obstetrics, emergency room care, radiology, oncology, diagnostic and coronary care, pediatric services, pharmacy services, and/or behavioral health services.